Hierarchically-organized terminology for indexing and cataloging of biomedical information

1. Main Public Health
Concepts
As defined By MeSH 2019
Ahmed-Refat AG Refat

2. MeSH
The National Library of Medicine’s
(NLM) Medical Subject Headings
(MeSH) is the controlled
vocabulary used for indexing
articles for the MEDLINE® subset
of PubMed.
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3. MeSH Provides
Hierarchically-organized
terminology for indexing
and cataloging of
biomedical information
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4. www.slideshare.net/ahmedrefat 4

5. Indexing Principles
H Category ( an example )
The MeSH headings are used for
general aspects of the field
while the subheadings are used
with specific anatomical terms,
diseases, organisms, biological
processes, and drugs.
https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/indexing/training/CATH_010.html
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6. MeSH Tree Structures
• MeSH descriptors are organized in 16
categories:
• category A for anatomic terms, category B for
organisms, C for diseases, D for drugs and
chemicals, etc.
• Each category is further divided into
subcategories. Within each subcategory,
descriptors are arrayed hierarchically from
most general to most specific in up to thirteen
hierarchical levels.
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7. MeSH Tree ( The 16 Categories )
 Anatomy [A]
 Organisms [B]
 Diseases [C]
 Chemicals and Drugs [D]
 Analytical, Diagnostic and
Therapeutic Techniques, and
Equipment [E]
 Psychiatry and Psychology [F]
 Phenomena and Processes [G]
 Disciplines and Occupations [H]
 Anthropology, Education and
Sociology [I]
 Technology, Industry, and
Agriculture [J]
 Humanities [K]
 Information Science [L]
 Named Groups [M]
 Health Care [N]
 Publication Characteristics [V]
 Geographicals [Z]
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8. Hierarchy of MeSH Tree Terms
( Example )
Category #
• Disciplines & Occupation
•H
Sub Heading
•Health Occupation
•H02
Sub-Sub
•Medicine
• H02.403
Sub-Sub-Sub
•Public Health
• H02.403.720
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9. Indexing Principles
H Category ( an example )
• Category H1 contains the MeSH headings
for the natural science disciplines as:
BIOLOGY – CHEMISTRY- MATHEMATICS –
PHYSICS…
• Category H2 contains the MeSH headings
for the various health occupations as:
MEDICINE - DENTISTRY - OPTOMETRY
https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/indexing/training/CATH_010.html
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10. Category ….. H
Disciplines and Occupations
Disciplines and Occupations ………[H]
–Natural Science Disciplines [H01]
–Health Occupations [H02]
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11. Health Occupations
[H02]
Health Occupations [H02]
–Environmental Health [H02.229]
–Evidence-Based Practice [H02.249]
–Health Services Administration
[H02.269]
–Hospital Administration [H02.309]
–Medicine [H02.403]www.slideshare.net/ahmedrefat 11

12. Medicine [H02.403]
–Medicine [H02.403]
–Public Health [H02.403.720]
• Epidemiology [H02.403.720.500]
• Preventive Medicine [H02.403.720.750]
– Environmental Medicine [H02.403.720.750.250]
– Occupational Medicine [H02.403.720.750.510]
– Preventive Psychiatry [H02.403.720.750.550]
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13. –Medicine [H02.403]
–Community Medicine [H02.403.220]
–Disaster Medicine [H02.403.230]
–Emergency Medicine [H02.403.250]
–Global Health [H02.403.371]
–Hospital Medicine [H02.403.377]
–Integrative Medicine [H02.403.400]
–Public Health [H02.403.720]
–Social Medicine [H02.403.800]
–Sports Medicine [H02.403.830]
–Telemedicine [H02.403.840]
–Travel Medicine [H02.403.850]
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14. Main
Public Health
Concepts
As defined By MeSH 2019

15. H02.403.720
• Public Health [H02.403.720]
– Epidemiology [H02.403.720.500]
• Molecular Epidemiology [H02.403.720.500.300]
• Pharmacoepidemiology [H02.403.720.500.650]
– Preventive Medicine [H02.403.720.750]
• Environmental Medicine [H02.403.720.750.250]
• Occupational Medicine [H02.403.720.750.510]
• Preventive Psychiatry [H02.403.720.750.550]
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16. Public Health
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.720
• Scope Note
• Branch of medicine concerned with the
prevention and control of disease and
disability, and the promotion of physical and
mental health of the population on the
international, national, state, or municipal
level.
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17. Epidemiology
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.720.500
• Scope Note
• Field of medicine concerned with the
determination of causes, incidence, and
characteristic behavior of disease outbreaks
affecting human populations. It includes the
interrelationships of host, agent, and
environment as related to the distribution and
control of disease
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18. Molecular Epidemiology
• Scope NoteThe application of molecular biology
to the answering of epidemiological questions.
The examination of patterns of changes in DNA to
implicate particular carcinogens and the use of
molecular markers to predict which individuals
are at highest risk for a disease are common
examples.
• Entry VersionMOL EPIDEMIOL
• Entry Term(s)Epidemiology, MolecularGenetic
Epidemiology
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19. PHARMACOEPIDEMIOL
• Scope Note
• The science concerned with the benefit and risk of
drugs used in populations and the analysis of the
outcomes of drug therapies. Pharmacoepidemiologic
data come from both clinical trials and epidemiological
studies with emphasis on methods for the detection
and evaluation of drug-related adverse effects,
assessment of risk vs benefit ratios in drug therapy,
patterns of drug utilization, the cost-effectiveness of
specific drugs, methodology of postmarketing
surveillance, and the relation between
pharmacoepidemiology and the formulation and
interpretation of regulatory guidelines
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20. Preventive Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.720.750
• A medical specialty primarily concerned with
prevention of disease (PRIMARY PREVENTION)
and the promotion and preservation of health
in the individual.
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21. Environmental Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.720.750.250
• N06.850.420 *(see slide # 7)
• Scope Note
• Medical specialty concerned with
environmental factors that may impinge upon
human disease, and development of methods
for the detection, prevention, and control of
environmentally related disease.
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22. Occupational Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.720.750.510
• Scope Note
• Medical specialty concerned with the
promotion and maintenance of the physical
and mental health of employees in
occupational settings.
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23. Occupational Diseases
• Tree Number(s) C24*(see slide # 7)
• Scope Note
• Diseases caused by factors involved in one's
employment.
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24. Occupational Health
• Tree Number(s) N01.400.525*(see slide # 7)
• "promotion & maintenance of physical & mental health
in the work environment": do not confuse with
OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE (the specialty) or
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH SERVICES; note X ref
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY which is GEN only: do not use
as coord for safety in an industrial milieu ( = SAFETY +
specific indust or occup heading); DF: OCCUP HEALTH
• Scope Note
• The promotion and maintenance of physical and
mental health in the work environment.
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25. Occupational Health Services
• Tree Number(s)
• N02.421.143.740*(see slide # 7)
• Scope Note
• Health services for employees, usually
provided by the employer at the place of
work.
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26. Preventive Psychiatry
• Tree Number(s) F04*.096.544.215.508*(see slide
# 7)
• H02.403.690.150.580
• H02.403.720.750.550
• Scope Note
• A discipline concerned with the prevention of
mental illness and the promotion of mental
health.
• F04
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27. Community Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.220
• Scope Note
• A branch of medicine concerned with the total
health of the individual within the home
environment and in the community, and with
the application of comprehensive care to the
prevention and treatment of illness in the
entire community.
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28. Evidence-Based Practice
• MeSH Heading H02.249
• Scope Note
• A way of providing health care that is guided by a
thoughtful integration of the best available
scientific knowledge with clinical expertise. This
approach allows the practitioner to critically
assess research data, clinical guidelines, and
other information resources in order to correctly
identify the clinical problem, apply the most high-
quality intervention, and re-evaluate the
outcome for future improvement.
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29. Health Services Administration
• Tree Number(s) H02.269
• ( general or unspecified; prefer specific health
service with /organ)
• Scope Note
• The organization and administration of health
services dedicated to the delivery of health
care.
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30. Hospital Administration
• Tree Number(s) H02.309
• N02.278.216.500
• N02.278.354
• N04.452.442*(see slide # 7)
• Scope Note
• Management of the internal organization of
the hospital.
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31. Disaster Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.230
• Scope Note
• Branch of medicine involved with
management and organization of public
health response to disasters and major events
including the special health and medical needs
of a community in a disaster.
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32. Emergency Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.250
• Scope Note
• The branch of medicine concerned with the
evaluation and initial treatment of urgent and
emergent medical problems, such as those
caused by accidents, trauma, sudden illness,
poisoning, or disasters. Emergency medical
care can be provided at the hospital or at sites
outside the medical facility.
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33. Geriatrics
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.355
• Scope Note
• The branch of medicine concerned with the
physiological and pathological aspects of the
aged, including the clinical problems of
senescence and senility.
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34. Global Health
• Tree Number(s)H02.403.371
• N01.400.337
• Scope Note
• A multi- and interdisciplinary field concerned
with improving health and achieving equity in
health for all people. It transcends national
boundaries, promotes cooperation and
collaboration within and beyond health science
fields, and combines population-based disease
prevention with individually-based patient care.
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35. Hospital Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.377
• Scope Note
• The branch of medicine concerned with the
delivery of comprehensive medical care to
hospitalized patients. Practitioners include
physicians and non-physician providers who
engage in clinical care, teaching, research, or
leadership in the field of general hospital
medicine.
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36. Integrative Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.400
• Scope Note
• The discipline concerned with using the
combination of conventional allopathic
medicine and ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE to
address the biological, psychological, social,
and spiritual aspects of health and illnes
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37. Travel Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.850
• Scope Note
• Multidisciplinary field focusing on prevention
of infectious diseases and patient safety
during international TRAVEL. Key element of
patient's pre-travel visit to the physician is a
health risk assessment.
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38. Telemedicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.840
• L01.178.847.652*(see slide # 7)
• N04.590.374.800*(see slide # 7)
• Scope Note
• Delivery of health services via remote
telecommunications. This includes interactive
consultative and diagnostic services.
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39. Sports Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.830
• Scope Note
• The field of medicine concerned with physical
fitness and the diagnosis and treatment of
injuries sustained in exercise and sports
activities.
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40. Social Medicine
• Tree Number(s) H02.403.800
• Scope Note
• A branch of medicine concerned with the role
of socio-environmental factors in the
occurrence, prevention and treatment of
disease.
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41. Health Promotion
• Tree Number(s) I02.233.332.445
• N02.421.726.407.579*(see slide # 7)
• Scope Note
• Encouraging consumer behaviors most likely
to optimize health potentials (physical and
psychosocial) through health information,
preventive programs, and access to medical
care.
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42. Health Education
• Tree Number(s) I02.233.332*(see slide # 7)
• N02.421.726.407*(see slide # 7)
• Scope Note
• Education that increases the awareness and
favorably influences the attitudes and knowledge
relating to the improvement of health on a
personal or community basis.
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43. Safety
• Tree Number(s) N06.850.135.060.075*(see slide # 7)
• Annotation
• IM in unspecified circumstances ("the economics of safety"
= SAFETY /econ) or specified circumstances ("safety in coal
mines" = SAFETY (IM) + COAL MINING (IM)); CONSUMER
PRODUCT SAFETY & EQUIPMENT SAFETY are also available
• Scope Note
• Freedom from exposure to danger and protection from the
occurrence or risk of injury or loss. It suggests optimal
precautions in the workplace, on the street, in the home,
etc., and includes personal safety as well as the safety of
property.
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44. Safety MeSH Descriptor
• Safety MeSH Descriptor Data 2019
• Details
• Qualifiers
• MeSH Tree Structures
• Concepts
• Scope Note
• Freedom from exposure to danger and protection from
the occurrence or risk of injury or loss. It suggests
optimal precautions in the workplace, on the street, in
the home, etc., and includes personal safety as well as
the safety of property.
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45. Cited Sources
Medical Subject Headings 2019
• https://meshb.nlm.nih.gov/search
• https://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/
• https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/indexing/traini
ng/CATH_010.html
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